Category Archives: Rumors

An employee of Pegatron — one of the various manufacturers Apple employs to actually create their products — posted the above photo to here Weibo profile. The image has since been removed, but not before various websites pulled the photo.

The picture shows dozens of devices in diagnostic mode, which makes sense: the employee was apparently in the quality assurance department, and these devices are being tested before being packaged for shipment.

The iPhone 5C is expected to be available shortly after the rumored September 10th event. The device is also expected to be Apple’s colorful, lower-cost product.

Just three weeks shy of Apple’s September 10th keynote, new details are emerging about the next-generation iPhone. According to multiple sources, including Mark Gurman and Rene Ritchie, the iPhone 5S will launch in a new gold color option alongside the traditional black and white offerings.

“While many have called this new iPhone color ‘gold,’ our source says that the color is more inline with the yellow fifth-generation iPod touch, but slightly lighter in texture,” writes Gurman. “Some have called this ‘champagne’ and that sounds about right. We’ve also heard that this gold model has a white front-face, so it won’t be a black and gold device, but rather a white and ‘gold/champagne’ phone. It looks elegant, not cheap, the source said.”

Gurman in particular corroborates analyst claims — and hidden code strings — that suggest the upcoming iPhone will have a fingerprint scanner embedded in the home button, perhaps based on technologies of security firm AuthenTec that Apple acquired in June 2012. The fingerprint scanner reportedly won’t be able to be used for payments upon launch, with an emphasis on security instead.

New photos of the next generation 9.7″ iPad’s front panel surfaced last night, again suggesting that Apple is planning to move toward thinner bezels like the iPad mini.

MacRumors shares some interesting points with us on the new photos.

- The display area is the same as the iPad Retina. - The edges of the frame are narrower using the same style as the iPad mini. - The ITO (Indium tin oxide) is the same as the iPad mini. - There is now 2 connectors instead of 1. - The connectors have been changed from FFC (Flat Flexible Cable, like the iPad 2/3/4) to FPC (Flexible Printed Circuits, like the iPhone 4/5)- Stamped on the front panel is a part number of 821-1892-02, which matches the format used by Apple on many of its iOS device components.

Some months ago, the press reported that AuthenTec was acquired by Apple. In the last few weeks,rumors on a fingerprint sensor embedded in the next iPhone generation have been increasing in the media. What would the fingerprint sensor be used for? Why do we need one on the iPhone or iPad? To make payments? I don’t think so.

The article presents an excellent overview of current (and near-future) fingerprinting technologies, as well as just how useful they might be in a future iPhone or iPad. Definitely worth a read, particularly as rumors that Apple will be included a fingerprint sensor in the iPhone 5S continue to be repeated.

You may want to listen to this while reading through this post. Yesterday saw Mark Gurman of 9to5mac — one of, if not the, most accurate sources of Apple information on the internet — stating that the next iPad mini would be based on the A6 chip platform, but that the product wouldn’t include an updated, high-resolution retina display. This information is actually based upon code strings found in iOS 7, though there have been rumors for some time that Apple wasn’t going to be adding a retina display to the iPad mini in its second iteration.

But then TheWall Street Journalhit back. TheWSJ is another accurate source of Apple rumors. More importantly, the newspaper tends to be one of the places that Apple PR goes to leak stories, meaning that this story could have been ceded to dispel the above story.

It’s up to you to decide — there’s a compelling argument on both sides. With increased competition from Google’s new Nexus 7, there’s more pressure than ever on Apple.

Since acquiring security firm AuthenTec for $356 million in July 2012, it has long been rumored that Apple would eventually integrate its fingerprint scanning technologies into future products. And that move could be happening in the near future, as hidden code in iOS 7 beta 4 — discovered by Hamza Sood (via 9to5Mac) — suggests that Apple is in fact working on a fingerprint scanner that will be built into the home button.

The uncovered code, located within the folder “BiometricKitUI.axbundle” under Accessibility, shows strings that VoiceOver would read to an iPhone user. “Photo of a person holding an iPhone with their right hand while touching the Home button with their thumb,” it reads. (more…)

A picture showing a bin full of “iPhone 5C” packaging has surfaced on Chinese website WeiPhone, leading to great speculation as to what the name could stand for. It is rumored that the iPhone 5C could be the name of the low-priced iPhone, but what does the “C” stand for if so?

The most obvious guess would be that “C” stands for “color,” as the purported budget iPhone is expected to be available in a myriad of different colors. But, a number of other guesses have also been put on the table, ranging from California and China to cheap and polycarbonate. (more…)

This morning, a report originating from German website iFun [Google Translate] (via MacRumors) suggested that Apple could launch its next-generation iPhone 5S at a September 6th media event. We were immediately cautious about this rumor because of its unproven source, and our assumptions proved to be correct.

The well-connected Jim Dalrymple of The Loop has put this rumor to bed with a simple “nope,” and that’s that. Nevertheless, a September — October timeframe for release is still anticipated. When do you think Apple will pull the curtains back on its next iPhone?

Apple is testing larger screens for iPhone and iPad, according to officials at the company’s suppliers. The prototypes include smartphone screens exceeding 4 inches, and screens for tablets that measure just under 13 inches diagonally. The latest iPhone 5 has a 4-inch screen, while the iPad has a 9.7-inch display. The iPad mini has a smaller 7.9-inch screen. (more…)